Hermeus
Hermeus8mo ago
USD 128250–156750/yr

Senior/Principal Mission Software Engineer

United StatesUnited States·AtlantaFull-timemid
OtherSoftware EngineerEngineerSoftware Engineering
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Quick Summary

Overview

Hermeus is a venture-backed defense aviation company reclaiming the lost art of rapid iterative prototyping to build the fastest aircraft in the world today. By prioritizing relentless hardware iteration, we deliver high-speed systems at the pace of the modern battlefield.

Technical Tools
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Hermeus is a venture-backed defense aviation company reclaiming the lost art of rapid iterative prototyping to build the fastest aircraft in the world today. By prioritizing relentless hardware iteration, we deliver high-speed systems at the pace of the modern battlefield. We work with the Department of War to provide the high-speed capabilities our nation and its allies need to maintain a durable, asymmetric advantage.

About the Role

~3 min read

The Mission Systems Engineering team develops the Mission Management System—the software platform connecting mission subsystems, autonomy services, operator interfaces, communications links, and telemetry across Hermeus aircraft and ground systems. 

As a Senior/Principal Mission Software Engineer, you will architect, build, integrate, and validate critical portions of this platform. You will work across software, avionics, communications, autonomy, simulation, and flight operations to solve complex problems in distributed, hardware-connected environments. 

This is a hands-on technical leadership role with the opportunity to define foundational architecture and directly influence how Hermeus aircraft are commanded, monitored, tested, and expanded with new mission capabilities. 

  • Own major Mission Management System capabilities from architecture through integration, testing, and operational use 

  • Design and develop high-performance C++ software for command and control, telemetry, mission workflows, and subsystem coordination 

  • Define scalable architectures, interfaces, APIs, protocols, and message schemas 

  • Integrate autonomy services, sensors, payloads, radios, tactical datalinks, and third-party systems 

  • Make technical decisions involving performance, reliability, latency, fault tolerance, and extensibility 

  • Diagnose complex issues across distributed software, networks, embedded hardware, avionics, and communications systems 

  • Partner with systems, avionics, autonomy, networking, flight-test, and operations teams 

  • Build and improve simulation, software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, and system-integration environments 

  • Lead design reviews, code reviews, technical trade studies, and integration activities 

  • Identify technical risks and drive solutions in environments where requirements are still evolving 

  • Mentor engineers and establish strong software architecture and development practices 

  • Support ground and flight-test campaigns, including real-time troubleshooting 

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related field 

  • 7+ years of professional software-development experience for Senior-level consideration 

  • 10+ years of relevant experience, or an equivalent record of technical leadership and impact, for Principal-level consideration 

  • Advanced proficiency with modern C++, including C++17 or newer 

  • Experience designing and delivering complex, production-quality software systems 

  • Strong knowledge of concurrency, memory management, software architecture, and performance-oriented development 

  • Experience with distributed, real-time, embedded, robotic, aerospace, or other hardware-connected systems 

  • Experience with TCP, UDP, multicast, and socket-level network programming 

  • Ability to define architectures, interfaces, protocols, and system boundaries in ambiguous environments 

  • Experience integrating software with hardware, external services, or independently developed subsystems 

  • Strong debugging skills across software, networking, and hardware interfaces 

  • Ability to clearly communicate technical decisions, risks, and tradeoffs across multidisciplinary teams 

  • Demonstrated ownership through design, implementation, integration, testing, and deployment 

  • Experience with mission systems, command-and-control software, mission planning, ground-control systems, autonomy platforms, or operator-facing applications 

  • Aerospace, defense, robotics, autonomous vehicle, or spacecraft experience 

  • Experience with RF communications, SATCOM, line-of-sight radios, or tactical datalinks 

  • Familiarity with publish/subscribe architectures or middleware such as DDS, ZeroMQ, ActiveMQ, or Kafka 

  • Experience integrating third-party sensors, payloads, autonomy services, radios, or mission subsystems 

  • Knowledge of avionics architectures, aircraft networks, telemetry, and command-and-control workflows 

  • Linux software development and deployment experience 

  • Experience developing fault-tolerant or degraded-mode behaviors for distributed systems 

  • Experience with simulation, SIL, HIL, system-integration labs, ground tests, or flight tests 

  • Familiarity with standards such as DO-178C, ARINC, FACE, OMS/UCI, STANAG, or MIL-STD 

  • Experience establishing technical direction or influencing execution across multiple teams 

  • Experience working in a startup or rapid-prototyping environment 

Requirements

~1 min read

Due to U.S. Government requirements associated with access to Controlled Cryptographic Items (CCI) and related controlled information, this position is limited to U.S. citizens. U.S. permanent residents (Green Card holders) are not eligible for this role.


The salary range listed for this role is intended as a general guideline. Final compensation will be determined based on a variety of factors, including role scope and responsibilities, relevant experience, education and training, key skills, market data, and business needs.

At Hermeus, compensation is only one part of our total rewards package. We offer competitive pay, equity, and a range of benefits designed to support our team.

What We Offer

~1 min read
Health & Wellness: 100% employer-paid healthcare and pet insurance
Financial: Competitive pay, stock options, 401(k) retirement plan, and potential year-end bonuses
Time Off: Paid parental leave, 12 federal holidays, unlimited PTO for exempt employees, and generous accrued PTO for non-exempt employees
Office Perks: Weekly paid office lunches and fully stocked breakrooms

Location & Eligibility

Where is the job
Atlanta, United States
On-site at the office
Who can apply
US
Listed under
United States

Listing Details

Posted
December 18, 2025
First seen
March 26, 2026
Last seen
September 5, 2026

Posting Health

Days active
163
Repost count
0
Trust Level
42%
Scored at
September 5, 2026

Signal breakdown

freshnesssource trustcontent trustemployer trust
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HermeusSenior/Principal Mission Software EngineerUSD 128250–156750